Since Kira had not been spayed, the head of the veterinary staff, Dr. Mark Verdino, performed the procedure while giving her a thorough examination and discovered that her health condition was different than expected. Kira did not have a hernia but a nodular growth near her rear end. “It’s very tender, a little ulcerated on the surface and probably the result of hormonal changes due to its intact state,” Dr. Verdino noted. The sterilization procedure also revealed another critical problem for Kira: she was developing a uterine infection, pyometra, which is a potentially fatal condition if left untreated.
“Failing to spay and neuter your pets can lead to serious problems and growths like Kira’s. And if we had not discovered her infection following the sterilization, it would have made her very ill,” he added. Now, Kira’s post-surgical plan includes antibiotics and topical treatment on her growth to see if it regresses. Otherwise, they will excise and biopsy the mass to make sure it is not malignant.